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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/24018802">Something good</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Coloured_Rainbow/pseuds/Coloured_Rainbow'>Coloured_Rainbow</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Portal (Video Game)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Angst, Blue Sky (Portal), Gen, Human Wheatley, Kinda, MAJOR Blue Sky spoilers, Portal 2 - Freeform, Post-Portal 2, just a sad little one shot :(</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-05-05</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-05-05</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-03 00:20:55</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,407</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/24018802</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Coloured_Rainbow/pseuds/Coloured_Rainbow</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Everyone knew that Stephen’s termination was right around the corner. He knows it, that’s for sure. He may be a little slow sometimes, but he’s been fired from enough jobs to know when it’s the day that the manager will pull him aside and--sometimes nicely, but most times very rather rudely--lay him off.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>29</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Something good</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Blue Sky made me so fucking sad :((((</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Stephen absentmindedly scratched at the unruly hair growing on the side of his cheek, as he often did when he was nervous. Even though the tiny, cramped cubicle he worked in shielded off his coworkers, he could still feel the tension radiating off of them. </p>
<p>Everyone knew that Stephen’s termination was right around the corner. He knows it, that’s for sure. He may be a little slow sometimes, but he’s been fired from enough jobs to know when it’s the day that the manager will pull him aside and--sometimes nicely, but most times very rather rudely--lay him off. Even though the work environment itself wasn’t the best, he’d be lying if he said he wasn’t going to miss it. </p>
<p>For one, he wouldn’t be able to see the bagel girl anymore, which meant he needed to find a time sometime today where he could talk to her or his chance was gone. Secondly, it really finally felt like maybe he was doing some important work. Sure, he wasn’t the one putting together devices or even the one testing them, but punching numbers into a computer was essential work. It was boring and tedious, but necessary. If people like Stephen didn’t do it, then no one would. In a way, it made him feel special. He was even able to hold this job for a good few years, which is something he couldn’t say about any other job he had before. </p>
<p>However, it looks like he missed his chance to do anything really worthwhile. His hope was to stay here long enough to eventually get promoted to Head Scientist, or whatever they called the most important person in the facility. He figured his hard work at the bottom would, in the end, bring him to the top. That’s what always happens in the movies he watches and books… well books that people talk about. He was never much one for reading.</p>
<p>But he messed up. He was doing really well and then he had to go along and blow up a computer. It wasn’t his fault, not really. He was just trying to make it run faster. In the end, it exploded not only his computer, but the electricity surged through to multiple of the cubicles near him, frying out their computers as well. He ended up clocking out right after, hoping no one would realise it was his fault, but by the dirty looks he got coming in today, they definitely traced the source back to him. </p>
<p>So, nervously scratching his sideburns and bouncing his feet, he hunched over his papers (with his computer out of service, he had to do everything by hand at the moment) and waited for the inevitable talk from the manager. She was nasty, the woman that ran their section of the facility. Her words were sharp and her glares were sharper. She had a way of making you feel stupid about absolutely everything in a way that Stephen really didn’t appreciate. Just thinking of her storming down to his cubicle and yelling at him was making his chest feel tight. </p>
<p>He managed to get an hour or two into his shift before he heard the workers adjacent to him get weirdly quiet. Everyone suddenly got so silent that Stephen could hear very important sounding footsteps make their way down the aisle. He knew it wasn’t the scary manager lady because she always wore these really stiff, 7 inch heels. How she was able to angrily stomp her feet and run down the aisles without falling over was a mystery to Stephen.</p>
<p>Stephen swallowed, lowering his head closer to his paper as he frantically scribbled down numbers and tried to ignore the approaching person.</p>
<p>
  <em>Please don’t come here, please just walk past…</em>
</p>
<p>“Stephen?”</p>
<p>Stephen ran a hand through his hair, slowly swiveling his chair to face the person standing outside his cubicle. It was a short, thin man with a badge reading Moss, D, Head of Research. </p>
<p>“Hallo,” Stephen flashed him a wary smile. “Yes, hi, that is me! Stephen… is indeed my name, yes. Are--Sorry, is something the matter?” He could hear his voice trembling, but hoped that his cheery expression balanced it out. </p>
<p>“Sherman Moss,” he greeted, holding out his hand.</p>
<p>“Oh, uh, yes of course.” Stephen reached out, taking the man’s hand. “Hi. Nice to, erm, very nice to make your acquaintance. Th-That’s just a fancy way of saying it’s good to meet you, in case you didn’t realize. Just a bit… a bit formal, is all. What can I, uh, is there something you need help with? Bit of trouble you need me to fix, or…?”</p>
<p>Moss gave him a strange look, but continued. “I’m actually here to confirm whether or not you’re the one who shorted out over 10 computers.”</p>
<p>Stephen laughed, tugging at his collar. “Oh jeez, uh, haha. See, funny you should mention that. My--See, my computer’s been having some trouble. I was just typing up some emails and--”</p>
<p>“The problem is,” Moss interrupted, “it seems a few other incidents like this one have occurred by your doing.”</p>
<p>“Oh, you don’t--you don’t happen to keep a record or anything like that, do you?”</p>
<p>“We do. Like the time the coffee maker exploded.”</p>
<p>“I was just trying to make it work faster--”</p>
<p>“Or the time you accidently printed out 50 black pages, using up all of the ink in the machines.” </p>
<p>“That, okay, that was just a bad website’s doing--”</p>
<p>“Or when you projected your screen onto everyone’s computers, playing a video with some sort of animal.</p>
<p>“That dog video was sent to me in an email--It-It must’ve been some sort of virus. Sorry, just a little technical jargon, don’t blame if you don’t--don’t know what that is, but it is very bad. Really bad. Clogged up the whole computer, corrupted my email. Had to make a new account after that. Just a normal day in the life of a techy, you know. It wasn’t--That wasn’t necessarily my fault, is what I’m saying.”</p>
<p>Stephen nervously rubbed his neck, pausing when he swore he saw a grin flash across Moss’ face. </p>
<p>“So,” Stephen cleared his throat. “Am I in trouble? Is that what this is? Because I’m sure--I’m absolutely positive I can make up for this. I-I do so much work and I’m sure that if I can talk to--”</p>
<p>“No need,” Moss help up a hand, cutting Stephen off.</p>
<p>“Sorry, uh, no--no need for what?”</p>
<p>“Excuses. There isn’t really a problem. We have more of a… proposition.”</p>
<p>“A-A proposition?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“We have a job that needs to be done and, well, we think you’re the perfect fit.”</p>
<p>Stephen blinked. “P-Perfect?”</p>
<p>“Absolutely! Your ideas are just what we need.”</p>
<p>“Wow. Oh, uh, you… you like my ideas?”</p>
<p>Moss laughed. “GOD, no! But they are <em>just</em> what we’re looking for.”</p>
<p>Stephen gave him a confused smile. “So… I did good?”</p>
<p>“You did great,” Moss smirked. “We’ll be in touch with you soon for that job, alright? Get you out of that stupid cubicle.”</p>
<p>“O-Of course! That would, man alive, that would be fantastic.”</p>
<p>Stephen nodded, saying his goodbyes.</p>
<p>Perfect--He had said he was perfect for the job! Stephen couldn’t recall having been perfect for anything! Wow.</p>
<p>He smiled to himself, leaning back in his chair. </p>
<p>Maybe things would actually start looking up soon. </p>
<p>……………….</p>
<p>…………………………..</p>
<p>
  <em>“This is what you were built for,” Dale, CA, intern was telling him, and now the excitement in his voice was nearly tangible. They had reached the curving set of steps which led up to another gantry directly beneath the looming, cable-strung thing in the center of the room, and Dale, CA, intern climbed up to stand directly beneath its curving, scaffolded bulk. A technician--no lab coat, grey jumpsuit--reached down from the scaffold to take him from Dale, CA, Intern’s outstretched hands.</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>“Easy, it’s not a beach ball you’re tossing around there,” Dale, CA, intern said to the technician in a sharp, officious voice, cribbed in no small part from Moss, D, Head of Research. And then, in an undertone, “Go for it, Wheatley. Know her dead.”</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>“Her? Er--sorry--I-I-I think I might have missed something--something fairly vital here--what am I actually supposed to do?”</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>Dale, CA, intern hesitated, then grinned a big, reassuring grin and let go of Wheatley’s handles, leaving him in the technician’s grip.</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>“Just be yourself.”</em>
</p>
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